Environmental Science & Engineering - www.esemag.com - September 2005
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US border restrictions worry waste managers

By John Willms,Willms & Shier Environmental Lawyers LLP

After years of debate, Washington may begin to tighten the U.S. border to Canadian solid waste imports. Conventional wisdom has always held that NAFTA would preclude any closure. However, recent developments suggest NAFTA may no longer guarantee our trash access to U.S. landfills.

On June 29, the U.S. Congressional Committee on Energy and Commerce approved The International Importation and Solid Waste Management Act to give individual states greater control over the wastes that pass their borders. The notice and consent provisions that currently apply to transboundary hazwaste shipments (under the U.S.- Canadian Agreement) would also be applied to solid waste transfers. The bill (H.R. 2491) now moves to the full House for a vote.

Then in July, the U.S. Senate passed a provision that would prohibit vehicles containing Canadian waste from entering the U.S. until the Secretary of Homeland Security certifies the methods used to inspect the vehicles for potential threats.

Claiming we face "a waste management crisis", the Ontario Waste Management Association has called on the province to quickly implement an integrated waste management plan to handle Ontario's waste within its own borders. A study completed by RIS International earlier this year says the disposal situation will become "much worse over the next five years." The study showed that:

Delays and inspections of Ontario waste crossing into the U.S. are already causing major problems.
Michigan is imposing restrictions on waste imports and increasing the fees it charges on waste imports.
If the border closed, Ontario's waste transfer stations have only two days capacity to manage the situation.

It's not just about Toronto's garbage. About two-thirds of the waste being trucked to the U.S. comes from other municipalities across the province, including Peel, York, Durham, Hamilton, Halton, Kitchener, Brantford, London, Barrie, Peterborough and Sudbury.

However, not everyone agrees that the situation is critical. We do not have to worry about the U.S. border closing to Canadian garbage, according to Michael Neely, area president of Republic Services, which holds the disposal contracts for a number of Ontario cities, including Toronto, Owen Sound and Kitchener. In a recent issue of Better Farming, Neely is quoted as saying it's clear sailing to the end of the Toronto contract.

If Michigan does succeed in shutting its borders to Ontario's solid waste, the MOE can invoke emergency powers and force municipalities with untapped landfill capacity to take outside trash, at least for the short-term. The MOE can also alter the CofAs of private landfills, amending the allowed service area and annual fill rate restrictions, to permit them to handle more municipal waste.

For more information visit www.willmsshier.com

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